Fabrication of nano serpentine-potassium acetate intercalation compound and its effect as additive on tribological properties of the fabric self-lubricating liner

The nano Serpentine-Potassium Acetate (Ser-KAc) organic intercalation compound was prepared by treating the nano-serpentine particles with potassium acetate through ultrasonication vibration. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), differential scanning calorimetry-thermogravimetry (DSC-TG), and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) were performed to study the effects of the ultrasonication power, ultrasonication time and intercalation temperature on the interlaminar spacing and intercalation rate of the compound. Remarkable intercalation effects were achieved under certain ultrasonication condition. Comparative studies on the tribological properties of the fabric self-lubricating liners with different concentrations of the nano-serpentine or nano Ser-KAc compound additives were conducted. It showed that addition of nano-serpentine or nano Ser-KAc compound improves the wear resistance of the liners to varying degrees but slightly decreases their antifriction performance in an applicative range. In this paper, a model of the unworn fabric self-lubricating liner modified with Ser-KAc compound were developed according to the experimental results. It was found that the liner with 2 wt% nano Ser-KAc compound additive exhibited excellent tribological performances.